Line tightener



M. A. ALFNO ET AL INVENToRs ma lhewjl, 9i/yung Stephen Bohenvek By WW d ATTORNEY Och, 18, 1927.

WITNESSES Patented Oct. 18,51927.

MATTHEW A. ALEANO, 'OE'GAEEIEnn LINE TIGHTENEE;

Application led April 27, 1927.

manipulated for tightening the line or for releasing the line when slack is desired therein. The device is preferably so arranged that a slight pull on one end of the line to which the device is applied, may

' serve to either tighten the line or release it as desired in accorda-nce with the particular direction in which the pull is exerted.

Further objects are to provide a device of this character which will be of practical construction, rugged, durable and eiiic'ient in use, easy to attach and operate,and well suited to the requirements of economical manufacture. j

With the above noted and other objects in view, the invention consists in certain novel features of construction and combina tions and arrangements of parts, as will be more fully hereinafter set forth and pointed out in the claim. The invention may be more fully understood from the following description in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein- Fig. 1 is a broken perspective view showing a device of the present invent-ion in use.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view through the line tightener showing one end of a line anchored thereto, and the other end removably held thereby.

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2.

The present device finds one of its preferred embodiments ina tightener for clothes lines, such for instance as a tightener for the line 10 of Fig. 1 which runs over a pair of pulleys 12, 12. Our improvement includes a pair of spaced parallel side plates 13,13 preferably integrally connected at theirtop as indicated at 14. Thetwo plates near one upper corner are connected byany anchoringv member such for instance as the pin 15, and f Serial No. 187,030.

vis arranged adjacent the' upper corner of the plates, preventing swinging movement of the eccentric to an exposed position beyond the plate ends, while pin 18 is arranged ANijfsrEiSrrEN 'EQEN'EK orffrAssA'Id'fNEw l JERSEY.' i

below the eccentric and limits the gravitational movement of the latter when the eccentric is not engaged with the Aline 10. The free end 2O of the rope 11 is passed between the pin 19 and the member 14 which connects the plates 13, and over the eccentric 16, this member being preferably roughened pr toothed as at 21 to frictionally engage the ine. f

Referring now to Fig.r2 of the drawings, it will be noticed that a direct downward pull on the rope end 2O will first move the eccentric 16 against the pin`18 and then will subsequently cause the line 11 to be drawn inwardly, sliding over the surface of the eccentric until the desired tautness of the line has been obtained. Now when the line end20 is gradually'released, movement of the line v11 to the right will tend to carry with it the eccentric 16 so that the rope is tirmly jammed between the member 14 and held by the eccentric. l

V When it is desired torelease the line, it i simply necessary to swing the end 2O into approximately thedotted line position of Fig. 2, and pull the line slightly, permitting the eccentricy 16 to gravitationally dropy against the pin 18v at which time the line may be slacked off.

' Obviously various changes and alterations mightl be made in the general form and arrangement of the parts described without departing from the invention. Hence we do not wish to limit ourselves to the details set forth, but shall consider ourselves at liberty to makev such changes and alterations as fairly fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claim.

Ve claim:

In a line tightener of the class described, a sheet of metal bent to provide a pair of spaced parallel integrally connected plates, an eccentric freely rotatably mounted between the plates adjacent one end thereof, means for anchoring a rope end to the other-.

end of lthe plates, and meanslimitin the rotary ymovement of thev eccentric inV oth directions, said means comprising e pair of pins on opposite sides of the eccentric, one

5 pin limiting the gravittonal dropping of,`

the eccentric when out ofcontact with the' other end of the line passed between `the ec centric andthe ntermediatewpolttron of the sheet, theother pin prei'entfng movement of the eccenti'c to inoperative post-on'beyond 10 Vthe ends of Vt"hep1atesr.

MATTHEW A. ALEANO. .STEPHEN BOHENEK. 

